Citation

Bellew MP, Bartholomew BJ. J. Neurosurg. Spine 2007; 6(6): 606-610.

Affiliation

Department of Neurosurgery, Tulane University, New Orleans, Louisiana, USA. mbellew@mac.com

Copyright

(Copyright © 2007, American Association of Neurological Surgeons)

DOI

10.3171/spi.2007.6.6.16

PMID

17561754

Abstract

The authors describe a 36-year-old woman with traumatic lateral spondyloptosis at L-2 and complete cauda equina injury who experienced a remarkable recovery after delayed treatment. To the authors' knowledge, this is the first case of traumatic spondyloptosis at L2-3 described in the English literature. A review of previous cases of lumbar spondyloptosis suggests that the degree of anatomical injury found at surgery is a better predictor of patient outcome than fracture severity assessed radiologically. Concomitant multisystem injury is common with spine disruptions of this magnitude and may mask clinical neurological function. Even when delayed, operative decompression of these severe lesions should be considered because dramatic neurological recovery is possible.

Language: en